The invention relates to a pressurizable water heating apparatus to make coffee and the like that can be operated in a vehicle in motion, such as an automobile.
Various devices have been made for making coffee in automobiles. One such device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,151,790, which is comprised of multiple chambers, a water supply line, and a lever or control arm pivotally positioned as part of the control circuit. It further provides that the heating chamber be of smaller capacity than the separate water reservoir (chamber), requiring a repeated heating and discharge action, i.e. a cycling action, operatively controlled by levers, control arms, or solenoid means. With the exception of the heating chamber, none of the foregoing elements nor the cycling operation is required or taught by the present invention. Moreover, the heated liquid from the heating chamber of the present invention is transferred to the ground coffee by gravity--there being no need for the heating chamber to function as a heat pump to force the water out of the heating chamber through a discharge tube to the ground coffee as is required in the above referenced patent.
Another patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,382,402, reveals a portable coffee maker for automobile use which discloses two "chambers defined by walls", one of which is the heating chamber. Said chambers defined by walls are open at the top and further comprise lid means to cover said chambers. The present invention teaches a sealable heating chamber with closable openings which may be operated under pressure for more efficient operation. The disclosure in '402 further requires the use of a means to heat the water and direct the same to a second chamber, such as a conventional percolator. Such a combined means is neither required nor taught by the present invention. Instead, the present invention teaches a separate electrical heating means immersed in the heating chamber fluid and extending through and closing the electrical opening in the heating chamber. Additionally, the '402 patent provides a means to position but not to secure the receiving cup. A receiving cup securing means is taught by the present invention.
Another patent of general interest is U.S. Pat. No. 3,413,909 which refers generally to an espresso machine that requires a volume of atmospheric air substantially greater than the volume of water in the heating chamber to expel the heated water from the chamber and force it through a charge of beverage-producing material contained in a removable receptacle. The present invention does not require such air to water ratio since the heated water is discharged from the heating chamber not by pressurized expulsion but by gravity. The present invention discloses a vent opening in the heating chamber to release the chamber pressure after the fluid heating process. Moreover, the espresso maker disclosed in patent '909 is not designed for automobile use and it discloses an electrical heating element which is external to the heating chamber and in contact with (embedded in) the chamber wall. In contrast, the heating means of the instant invention protrudes into the heating chamber and is immersed in the heating chamber fluid.
Other patents of general interest are related U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,793,933 and 3,844,206, that disclose pressurized heating chamber devices for non-automotive use. The coffee maker and the infuser, disclosed respectively in '933 and '206, both require a thermally responsive valve means controlling the fluid passage from the heating chamber that regulates a thermal pumping process. Neither the foregoing element nor the method of operation disclosed is taught or required by the present invention. Moreover, '206 discloses control means responsive to the level of infusive material in the heating chamber. Such control means are neither disclosed nor required by the present invention.
Some of the drawbacks to the previous designs of automobile coffee makers is that they are inefficient--consuming an excessively long period of time to heat the water in order to make coffee.
In regard to the foregoing pressurized designs, none teach brewing chambers that operate at the safer atmospheric pressure as does the present invention. Moreover, they are generally more complicated to operate, cannot be mounted in an transport vehicle, nor are they adapted to operate within the electrical constraints of an automobile.
Although there have been many devices disclosed in the prior art which accomplish the purpose of heating fluid in an automobile, for the making of coffee and the like, none are known to the applicant which comprise a ventable pressurized heating chamber that discharges the heated liquid by gravity alone, in a safe, unpressurized manner. The present invention further provides an efficient heating means disposed within the heating chamber and means to mount the device to the automobile and to secure a receiving cup.